A GOOD STORY tends to come with layers. Squid Game is fairly straightforward: we have a flawed hero (Gi-hun, played by Lee Jung-jae) and a brutal villain (the Front Man, played by Lee Byung-hun) on a collision course, with tons happening in the space between the two of them. The layers come into play, though, when you start moving those pieces around the game board, and Squid Game does a brilliant job of that in its second season, when it puts the Front Man into the game as player 001—except the viewers are the only ones who know who he really is.
The role of Player 001 has historically been a corrupt one; in season 1, the old man Il-nam was Player 001, but he turned out to actually be the creator of the games, in on it from the beginning. In season 2, Player 001 appears at first to vote for the games to remain—before the camera shows that it’s In-ho, also known as the Front Man, who is a past winner of the games and the overarching villain of the show. But there’s one problem—even our hero, Gi-hun, doesn’t know what his face looks like.
And so In-ho—faking a new identity as the humble Young-il—becomes an ally and friend of Gi-hun and many others in the game. It creates a wonderful ripple as we get to see a number of things at play all at once: In-ho’s levels of deception and villainy, putting the skills that helped him win the games previously on display, and also the kind heart that Gi-hun has consistently put on display. Despite the horrors he’s experienced and seen, he’s still willing to make new friends and let more people in.
It’s these opposing schools of thought and thinking—Gi-hun’s kindness, optimism, and desire to do the right thing, and In-ho’s belief that humanity is evil and beyond redemption or saving—that make up the general ideological debate at the very center of Squid Game. And we’re thrilled that the show, and season 2 specifically, let us see that put on display in such an entertaining fashion.
Who is 001 in Squid Game season 2?
Squid Game season 2’s 001, or Young-il, is actually In-ho, better known as the Front Man.
If you didn’t remember from season 1, or watch a recap before diving into season 2, it’s important to know that a large part of season 1 is spent with a detective character, Jun-ho, who is searching the Squid Game island for any trace of his brother, who has been long missing; it turns out that his brother is actually the Front Man, who oversees the games and previously won back in 2015, corrupting his belief in humanity forever. The Front Man is basically the Darth Vader of Squid Game.
While he’s feigning humility and kindness in the game as 001/Young-il, he’s actually a cynical murderer and villain.
Why did the Front Man join the game as Player 001?
In an interview with Netflix’s Tudum, actor Lee Byung-hu, who plays the Front Man, explained why In-ho re-entered the game as Player 001.
“Front Man returns to the game wanting to enlighten Gi-hun—wanting to teach Gi-hun and make him think the way he does about the world and mankind,” he said.
However, his experiences throughout the course of the season did find the hero’s relentless optimism rubbing off on him as well. Lee continued:
“At some point, you can feel he is actually enjoying himself in the game. He’s excited, he’s nervous,” he said. “While he went back to the game wanting to change the way Gi-hun viewed the world, on some level, subconsciously, he looks at Gi-hun, who refuses to let go of the hope that he carries for humanity, and that reminds In-ho of himself.”
001/Front Man is played by Lee Byung-hun
Lee Byung-hun, who plays the Front Man in Squid Game, is a massive star of South Korean film. A couple of his most notable roles include appearing in major pieces of cinema like I Saw the Devil, as well as Joint Security Area, which is directed by Park Chan-wook (Oldboy, The Handmaiden, Decision to Leave). Quentin Tarantino has cited Joint Security Area as one of his favorite movies to come out since he became a director in 1992.
Watch Joint Security Area Here
Lee has also crossed over into American film, on occasion. He appeared as Storm Shadow in both 2009’s G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra and 2013’s G.I. Joe: Retaliation, while also playing major roles in blockbusters Red 2, Terminator: Genisys, and alongside Denzel Washington, Ethan Hawke, and Chris Pratt (among others) in the 2016 remake of The Magnificent Seven.
